Monthly Archives: August 2006

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For those who are addicted to “The Real World,” the latest cast, including gay member Tyler (left), will get together for a one-hour special on MTV at 10 p.m. tonight. The show, “Fun, Sun & Totally Done: The Real World Key West Reunion” brings together Tyler, Svetlana, Paula, Janelle, John, Zack and Jose to relive the show’s more memorable moments.

Tonight’s reunion made me think about how much “The Real World,” by consistently including at least one gay cast member almost every season, has done to help foster understanding and love. When I think back to more than a decade ago when Pedro Zamora was on the San Francisco season, what I remember most other than his eloquence about having AIDS and his falling in love with partner Sean, was the rock-solid friendship he had with Judd and Pam (now married). They loved him like family, better than a lot of families, and it showed. Pedro died not long after that season aired, but it was a gift that he lived long enough to be on it and to impact so many lives.

The show’s very first (and many say still the best) season was in New York and included a gay housemate: Norm. In the following 17 seasons, there have been many gays and lesbians. Since I haven’t watched the show regularly in several years (I have other addictions now), I can only mention the houseguests I remember well: Miami had Dan Renzi who has stayed on the radar as a reality star, then there was Danny Roberts from the New Orleans season whose boyfriend was in the military but still had the guts to visit him with cameras rolling (face blurred though).

My favorite season was with gay man Chris and outrageous lesbian Aneesa in Chicago. While Chris got all the attention with his model good looks, it was Aneesa who was one of the most memorable characters ever. Her emotional conversations with her mother, the fights with girlfriends, her walking around naked and just her general outspokeness. Aneesa (pictured below) was a hoot but balanced it out well with how articulate and thoughtful she was in the diary room sessions. Somehow, the seasons I watched without a gay or lesbian cast member aren’t as memorable to me, like London and Las Vegas.

Anyway, I hope the show lasts forever and always includes a diverse cast. I believe it has made a huge difference in people’s lives and their attitudes.

We know there won’t be very many gay characters on any of the broadcast network shows this fall so over the next few weeks, we’ll spotlight the few that there are. First up: Sean Maguire, who plays gay 20-something Kyle Lando on the CBS sitcom “The Class” about a group of third-grade classmates who reunite years later.

“All the other characters are in a state of crisis,” Maguire says in the current issue of “Out” magazine. “Me and my boyfriend have a happy, solid relationship. That’s what I think is cool because it’s a more honext portrayal of the gay fans I have.”

Maguire, straight off-screen, is from a London suburb and racked up several acting credits including a part of the classic British show “EastEnders.” Of his on-screen boyfriend, portrayed by Cristian de la Fuente, Maguire said: “(He) is really handsome. So by comparison, I decided I’m just going to be the quirky, funny one.”

The show was created by real-life partners David Crane and Jeffrey Klarik who said of Maguire: “It was important to us that Kyle be this endearing, funny guy who anyone would want to spend time with. We totally found that in Sean.”

How great is this? The wonderful Leslie Jordan, best known for his role in the film and stage versions of “Sordid Lives” won an Emmy over the weekend for his hilarious portrayal of Beverley Leslie on “Will & Grace.” His flithy rich, bitchy and once comically closeted character graced 12 episodes of the series and is most noteable for his running fued with boozy, pill-popping Karen Walker (Megan Mullally). Unfortunately, in the series finale, the 4-foot, 11-inch Jordan literally blew out of a window to his demise just as he had found happiness with Jack (Sean Hayes).

After receiving the Emmy Jordan said: “I loved working with on “Will & Grace,” they trotted me out like an aging show pony.”

As the winner of “Guest Actor in a Comedy Series,” the openly-gay Jordan will be a presenter, along with “Guest Actress” winner Cloris Leachman, at Sunday night’s Emmy telecast. I’ll be on the red carpet and hope to flag him down for a quick hello. This time, I won’t make the same mistake as at last year’s GLAAD Awards when I said, “Of all your roles, I loved the one you did on “Designing Women” as Suzanne’s (Delta Burke) crooked accountant, Reggie Mac Dawson.” Insert foot in mouth: Jordan didn’t play that role, Danny Thomason did.

But he had a great sense of humor about it, said it happened to him all the time. BTW, he and the great Delta Burke, who appeared together this year in LA productions of “Sordid Lives” and “Southern Baptist Sissies,” are now touring with “Sissies” through the fall.

My favorite movie of the summer, “Little Miss Sunshine,” broke into the top 10 over the weekend! The film’s terrific ensemble cast includes Steve Carell as a gay academic who goes on a road trip with his dysfunctional family as he recovers from a suicide attempt. His boyfriend left him for his arch-rival who is now topping the best sellers list.

‘Sunshiine” took seventh place after adding 538 theaters (691 total) and grossed $5.6 million. The Fox
Searchlight release has taken in $12.7 million to date and expands into more than 1,400 theaters on Friday. “The regional openings were very strong throughout the weekend,” said Searchlight Chief Operating Officer Steve Gilula. “The momentum continues.”

Another film with a prominent gay character, “Talldega Nights: the Ballad of Ricky Bobby” finished in second place after two weekends on top. The Will Ferrell NASCAR comedy, which features Ali G as an openly gay French racing champion, took in $13.75 million, crossing the $100 million mark on Thursday. The film, released by Sony Pictures entertainment, has grossed $114.3 million in three weeks. “Its a picture that appeals to the whole country,” said Rory Bruer, Sonys president of domestic distribution. “Its attracted everybody.”

“The Devil Wears Prada,” which features Stanley Tucci as a magazine executive working for Meryl Streep, dropped to 15th place after two months in theaters but continues to earn money. “Prada” added $1.3 million to its total which has now reached an impressive $118.9 million.

Business went from bad to worse for “The Night Listener,” the suspense thriller that star Robin Williams as a gay radio host and Bobby Cannavale as his ex-boyfriend. Business for “Listener” plummeted by more than 75 percent as it steadily loses theaters. It took in $384,000 over the weekend and $7.5 million overall.

The critically-acclaimed “Qunicearnera,” winner of the top prize at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, saw its grosses keep growing as it continues to roll out into more theaters each week. The film with several gay characters took in $170,000 over the weekend and has grossed $516,000 overall.

“Another Gay Movie” played in 14 locations (three less than last week) but dropped in business by only 23 percent. The comedy earned $54,452 over the three days for a total of $292,911 to date.

The political family drama “Poster Boy” expanded to four theaters and took in $8,484 for a two week totl of $20,772.

And finally, “The Mostly Unfabulous Social Life of Ethan Green” is now playing in only one theater and added $4,184 to its total which now stands at $25,469.

After listing the top 10 female movie kisses as chosen by AfterEllen.com, thought it would be a lot of fun to compile a list of the “Out In Hollywood” top 10 male movie kisses (That’s Colin Farrell, right). The main criteria: choosing kisses that really looked like how men kiss! That eliminated such well-known scenes as Kevin Kline and Tom Selleck in “In & Out” (Grandpa and Grandma Walton generated more heat, Val Kilmer (still the best lips in Hollywood) and Robert Downey Jr. in “Kiss, Kiss Bang Bang”
and even Harry Hamlin and Michael Ontkean in “Making Love.” They looked like two straight men kissing in this breakthrough film. Surprisingly, so did Craig Chester and Malcom Gets in “Adam & Steve” which is disappointing since both actors are gay! And while Seann William Scott and Jason Biggs won the “best on-screen kiss” prize at the 2002 MTV Movie Awards for their kiss in “American Pie 2,” kisses performed on a dare just do not cut it. But read on, the studly Seann William Scott does make the list in the end.

So, here are the picks:

1. Thomas Jane and Vincent D’Onofrio in “The Velocity of Gary.” This is a little seen film and may not be for all tastes but there is no denying that the first hungry, passionate kiss between the two leading men is a scorcher. They go for it and it is a beautiful cinematic thing. There is a video link to this kiss at the bottom of this post.

2. Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal in “Brokeback Mountain” Their technique doesn’t come close to D’Onofrio and Jane, but they more than make up for it in passion and heart. When the two cowboy lovers see each other for the first time in several years, they kiss so intensely, they aren’t even aware that the wife of Ledger’s character (Michelle Williams) is watching. A well-deserved winner of the 2006 MTV Movie Award for best on-screen kiss.

3. Rupert Graves and James Wilby in “Maurice” (left) After Graves’ character is emotionally-tortured for so long by his repressed and closeted love (Hugh Grant), he falls for the gardener on Grant’s family estate and they kiss with reckless abandon and even end up together in the end!

4. Gael Garcia Bernal and Diego Luna in “Y Tu Mama Tambien.” This movie is so sexy anyway including sexy three-way dancing between the two teenaged guys and an older woman. At the end, she leads them to a night of passion where they finally express their attraction to each other.

5. Brad Hallowell and Gregory J. Lucas in “Vacationland” (below, right) Not seen much outside the festival curcuit, this gem will be on DVD this fall. The first kiss is during a daydream Halloway has an it is very sensual but a later one, after the high school football game, all their feelings go into it. There are many make-out scenes between the two so you have your pick of best kiss. As a bonus, Hallowell shares a real scorcher with his French teacher (Nathan Johnson).

6. Steve Sandvoss and Wes Ramsey in “Latter Days” The forbidden kiss is always appealing so the first one between the Morman missionary and the party boy is nice. But things kick in to an other gear entirely later on when Sandvoss’ closeted character throws caution to the wind.

7. Daniel Day-Lewis and Gordon Warneke in “My Beautiful Launderette.” Late in the film, after they prepare the launderette for its grand opening, these two secret lovers have some champagne in the back room and share some very romantic kisses which includes Warneke pouring champagne down Day-Lewis’ throat.

8. Ben Silverstone and Brad Gorton in “Get Real” (pictured, left) It is so heartbreaking when Gorton’s character, the closeted high school jock, shows up at his not-so-closeted classmate’s house drunk after the high school dance where they stared at each other, longingly, on the dance floor as they dance with their female dates. Gorton is tortured about it but less so after that first kiss.

9. Colin Farrell and Dallas Roberts in “a Home at the End of the World” (pictured at top of page) We all would have liked to see how Farrell and Jared Leto would have done locking lips in “Alexander” but as with everything else about that movie, we were sorely disappointed. But Farrell doesn’t disappoint in “Home” where he has more than one kiss with Roberts. But my favorite is after they dance on the porch of their house, they lovingly kiss.

10. Seann William Scott and Ashton Kutcher in “Dude, Where My Car?” Who woulda thunk it? These two guys, playing girl crazy slackers, unexpectedly give moviegoers one of the best on-screen kisses between two men ever. They end up at a red light next to Fabio and his hot girlfriend and begin a game of one-upmanship. Fabio revves his car, Kutcher revves their car. Fabio puts his arm around the girl, Kutcher puts his arm around Scott. Fabio makes out with the girl, Kutcher makes out with Scott!

Some of these guy-guy kisses are featured on this terrific video I found on UTube that I suggest you all check out. It’s heavy on the kissing scene from “Velocity” and you will see for youself why it ranked number one!

If you want to see gay characters on television this fall, you better turn to cable.
The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) released its annual study today, Where We Are On TV,? reported exclusively in my story in today’s Daily News.
If not for scheming teen Andrew Van De Camp (pictured above with boyfriend) on ABCs megahit Desperate Housewives? and Dr. Kerry Weaver on the long-running ER? on NBC, the only regular gay or lesbian character on a returning broadcast network show this fall would be a closeted accountant named Oscar on NBCs The Office.?

Of all the series regulars on the networks 2006-07 prime-time schedules, there are only the returning three as well as six on new shows – all in supporting roles. That makes for only 1.3 percent of all the regular characters on
scripted network shows during a year when portrayals of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered characters have gotten unprecedented exposure in such films as Brokeback Mountain,? Capote,? and Transamerica.?

GLAAD analyzed the 95 comedies and dramas announced for the new season by CBS, ABC, FOX, NBC, The CW and MyNetworkTV. Of the 679 lead or supporting characters on those shows, there are eight gay male characters and one lesbian. There are an additional five semi-regular gay or lesbian characters but no bisexual or transgendered characters on any of the shows.

Of the new network shows set to bow in the coming months, the ABC drama Brothers & Sisters? features a gay man as a supporting character, the CBS comedy The Class? has one of the only gay leading
characters on any show, the ABC comedy Help Me Help You? (pictured, right) features a closeted gay man, and MyNetworkTVs Fashion House? has two gay supporting characters.?

Last fall, the networks had 10 regulars including Andrew, representing 1.4 percent of all characters on television as well as six recurring characters. The end of the eight-year run of Will & Grace? meant the elimination of two of broadcast televisions highest-profile gay men: Will Truman (Eric McCormack) and Jack McFarland (Sean Hayes).

Cable is a different story completely with 25 series regulars gay or lesbian in addition to many recurring characters on such shows as The Sopranos,? The L Word,? The Wire,? South of Nowhere,? Degrassi: The Next Generation? and Rescue Me.? The addition of MTVs Logo channel and its drama Noahs Arc? has helped numbers with a cast exclusively featuring gay African-American characters while the LGBT digital cable channel here! TV has the soap opera Dantes Cove? that centers around gay and lesbian relationships.

Cliick HERE to read the entire GLAAD study!
Click HERE for a list of LGBT characters in broadcast networks!
Click HERE for a list of LGBT characters on cable!

I know the opening weekend numbers were low, but when I went to see “Snakes on a Plane” at The Grove this afternoon, I was still surprised to see the auditorium only about three-quarters full. It’s just as well, more room to spread out.

I wanted to hear Samuel L. Jackson say “I’ve had it with these motha@#*& snakes on this motha@#%* plane!” I also was curious about the male flight attendant whose sexuality, I had read, was ambigious. So there he was, played by Bruce James, seemingly gay based on various stereotypical traits etc. But in the end, SPOILER ALERT, his hot blonde girlfriend, Kitty, jumps into his arms after landing. Passengers and flight crew alike had been sure he was in deep denial and had made her up.
I don’t really see what’s so funny about having a character like this in the film but, whatever.

The actor spoke about his not-so-gay role with AfterElton.com last week. Here are a few excerpts:

“When the bodyguard gets bit in the ass, what happens in the script is that right away they need to suck out the poison, but no one will do it. So he [Ken] says right away I’ll do it?. So it’s things like that made people think he’s gay. The same thing when one of the snakes dies and they’re trying to figure out what color the snake is and Ken pops up and says That’s teal.?
AE: Does Ken have heroic moments in the movie?
BJ: Yeah, he does. I push someone out of the way of beverage cart racing down the aisle. I also have a moment with a snake in the galley. People are stuck in the galley, and I come in and push them out of the way and there is a snake on the floor. I pick it up and nuke it in the oven. That was a scene they added after they tested it [the movie], and apparently I tested really well, and they just wanted to add a little more stuff for me. It’s a fun scene too because Ken sees the snake on the floor, and since they changed the movie to an R, I get to swear a little bit. I see the snake and say, Oh, f*** me? which is totally something Ken would say.

AE: You seem pretty aware of the issues involved with this character. What accounts for that? Is that part of being a Canadian? Or just you?
BJ: I think for me personally it just has to do with experiences I had growing up. A good friend of mine in high school was gay and came out. Then I was also a resident advisor at Simon Fraser University and we did a lot of training involving a lot of different types of people. And you learn to have an open mind about things. That’s one of the greatest jobs I’ve ever had. But I’ve always been open and fine, and I know that I’m not the most masculine person in the world. I’m not the most feminine either, but I’m to a point where I’m comfortable with who I am and I know who I am and those traits that I have.

There are few people in the public eye who I admire more than the great tennis legend Martina Navratilova who will be retiring for the second time from pro tennis at the U.S. Open next month at the age of 49! Over the weekend, Martina Navratilova won her 175th doubles title at the Canadian Open. It was a fifth doubles win for Navratilova at the Canadian event, each with a different partner. She also won in 1981, 1982, 1985 and 2004.
There are those who consider Martina the greatest female tennis player of all time based on the record number of singles and doubles titles won. But to me, Martina is “the greatest” because she came out back in the early 1980s when it was an incredibly brave thing to do and when virtually no pro athlete had done it before. She lost endorsements, got heckled by crowds and faced some really insulting questions in press conferences. But this champion on the court and in life pressed on and won everything in sight, multiple times, including nine Wimbledon singles crowns.

So who better than the marvelous Martina, outspoken from the very beginning, to advise Lance Bass on being out in the public eye. She took the time to write a letter to “People” magazine in support of Bass, who came out with a splash on the magazine’s cover last month. She wrote that Bass “is a courageous young man.”
“Coming out to your family and friends is hard enough; to do so to the world is a lot harder. I know, as I took this step more than 25 years ago And while a lot has changed in 25 years, we in the gay community have a long way to go before we achieve equal rights and equal protection under the law.”

Bass had said in his people interview that he didn’t to just be associated with gay issues or be seen as a role model. But Martina, one of the best role models and spokespeople for the LGBT movement, encouraged him to become involved. “As far as being an activist is concerned, one does not really look for the fight, the fight simply finds you…As our fight for equality continues, I will not be surprised to one day see Lance Bass marching with the rest of us, right there in the front row.”
And maybe he will. Bass attended a ceremony at the California State Legislature recently where his boyfriend, Reinchen, was honored as a role model for LGBT people and the pair made an appearance this week in Malibu at a camp for kids with AIDS (pictured below):

I think this item will be of particular interest to the Lesbian readers but also might get me a few more straight male readers as well. After all, we know how they love to see two women lockin’ lips! I was glad to see my all-time favorite such scene included: Susan Sarandon and Catherine Denueve in “The Hunger.”

AfterEllen.com has compiled a dandy top 10 list of the best lesbian kisses in film history topped off by Jennifer Tilly and Gina Gershon’s sexy smooches (pictured,right) in 1996’s “Bound.” In the opening scene, Violet (Tilly) openly cruises Corky (Gershon) while riding in an elevator with her oblivious mafia boyfriend and a cat-and-mouse seduction ensues.

Rounding out the top five are: 2. Naomi Watts and Laura Harring in “Mulholland Dr.; 3. Ellen Degeneres and Sharon Stone in ” If These Walls Could Talk 2″ 4. Joan Chen and Anne Heche (pre-Ellen days) in “Wild Side” and 5. Ali Sheedy and Radha Mitchell in “High Art.”

Maria de Medeiros and Uma Thurman’s kiss in “Henry and June” was number six while Sarandon and Denueve only ranked seventh (Maybe I’ll have more to say if I do an male kiss list). Rounding out the top 10:
8. Michelle Williams and Chloe Sevigny in “If These Walls Could Talk 2,” 9. Helen Shaver and Patricia Charbonneau in ” Desert Hearts” and 10. Debra Winger and Glenn Headly (below) in “Eulogy.”

Just a few weeks ago, he said some supportive things about his former ‘N Sync bandmate, Lance Bass, coming out of the closet. But in an interview with Fashion Rocks magazine, the 29-year-old singer and aspiring actor doesn’t sound so enlightened when discussing American Idol champ Taylor Hicks:

“If he has skeletons in his closet whatsoever; if, God forbid, he’s gay; and all these people in Mississippi who voted for him are like, ‘Oh, my God. I voted for a queer!’ It’s just too much pressure.”

Huh?

The magazine also quotes Timberlake as saying that Hicks “…can’t carry a tune in a bucket.”

Timberlake’s reps were saying Friday that the performers’ comments “were taken completely out of context.”